Rifles we wish we've never sold, and WHY!
- Thread starter 7stw
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I'll bet that was a nice stalking rifle!35 remington pump with the spiral barrel underneath with the brass cartridge on the left side....
That's awesome!!Don't get me started.
They respond better, and love to be fingered!
Not a rifle, but a Dan Wesson 357.mag with a 6" rib barrel. That thing had thousands of rounds thru it and still shot spot on. Like fool, I sold it to get a Colt 1911.....and yo make things worse....that was the first handgun I purchased. On the upside, I did find one in .44 mag a few years ago. That eased the pain some....
Remington Sendero in 7 STW. Was crazy accurate. Sold it when I thought I needed a lighter rifle for a upcoming mule deer hunt. Second was a browning A-bolt stainless stalker in 30-06. Got it when I was 18. Sold it to a buddy who's still using it. Was one of those guns that just fits. Killed a pile of deer with that 30-06.
D
Deleted member 103481
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When I want to sell a rifle that I can tell I'll probably regret but it just isn't perfect for me I try to sell it to a friend or relative so that I can check up on it and enjoy watching it make them happy.
so far that's working well for me, whenever I regret selling them I can text them and ask how it's doing and get range reports. The one that really "got away" Is a weatherby vanguard I still load for and my BIL killed his first deer with it this last year, even cooler I got to show him how to make his ammunition, and then watch him pull the trigger.
so far that's working well for me, whenever I regret selling them I can text them and ask how it's doing and get range reports. The one that really "got away" Is a weatherby vanguard I still load for and my BIL killed his first deer with it this last year, even cooler I got to show him how to make his ammunition, and then watch him pull the trigger.
Gwine
Well-Known Member
That would have been my first rifle. Old Marlin .22 bolt action. We didn't have a clip for it and the firing pin was broken. Had to single feed and put firing pin back in if it fell out (finish nails cut to right length) Super accurate. Sold it when I was 16 to fund a new semi auto with a scope. That new rifle only lasted a couple years before it went down the road. It's been 30 years and I still think about it.
cdherman
Well-Known Member
2 Rugers and a Lee Enfield.....
This thread gets reborn every so often. We are all (well some folks are going out and trying their luck) tired of the new world of pandemic. Hope it all ends better than the worst predictions.
anyhow, my Dad bought a .303 brit sporterized in the 60's prolly after the import restrictions after JFK was assassinated. It was my childhood dream to shoot that gun. Brass butt plate and all. And shoot it I did in the 70's. Then very carefully took it apart, refinished the stock, made it a thing to behold. For mucked up .303 Lee Enfield at least.... My Dad traded it for a 700 BDL that I still own. But I surely miss that old .303....
I bought a .220 Swift heavy barreled Ruger once. Shot reloads, 5 under a dime. But prairie dogs were getting rarer and rarer. I could see no use for the Swift. I ask myself again and again -- why did you trade a tack driver... Now I still have the .44 Redhawk the Swift died for. Haven't shot it in 15 years....
Buddy in college needed some $$, offered a .243 that was some sort of medium heavy barrel Ruger again. Shot like a .22LR. I killed several deer, and the accuracy with reloads was phenomenal. But my uncle's 2nd wife's grandson needed a beginner rifle, so I loaned him the gun. He loved it (of course), and I was persuaded to part with it for $200 in 1990. STUPID....
Aside from my Dad's sentimental mistake, the basic gist of my story is: NEVER SELL AN ACCURATE GUN.... !!!
This thread gets reborn every so often. We are all (well some folks are going out and trying their luck) tired of the new world of pandemic. Hope it all ends better than the worst predictions.
anyhow, my Dad bought a .303 brit sporterized in the 60's prolly after the import restrictions after JFK was assassinated. It was my childhood dream to shoot that gun. Brass butt plate and all. And shoot it I did in the 70's. Then very carefully took it apart, refinished the stock, made it a thing to behold. For mucked up .303 Lee Enfield at least.... My Dad traded it for a 700 BDL that I still own. But I surely miss that old .303....
I bought a .220 Swift heavy barreled Ruger once. Shot reloads, 5 under a dime. But prairie dogs were getting rarer and rarer. I could see no use for the Swift. I ask myself again and again -- why did you trade a tack driver... Now I still have the .44 Redhawk the Swift died for. Haven't shot it in 15 years....
Buddy in college needed some $$, offered a .243 that was some sort of medium heavy barrel Ruger again. Shot like a .22LR. I killed several deer, and the accuracy with reloads was phenomenal. But my uncle's 2nd wife's grandson needed a beginner rifle, so I loaned him the gun. He loved it (of course), and I was persuaded to part with it for $200 in 1990. STUPID....
Aside from my Dad's sentimental mistake, the basic gist of my story is: NEVER SELL AN ACCURATE GUN.... !!!
I've got a bunch I really miss , but the worst. A custom stocked Ruger #1. Bastogne Walnut with shadow-line cheek rest. Hand checkered, tear drops off the action flats. Rust blued 25" Shilen and receiver chambered in 6.5x284. I am sure the seller feels worse than me. He traded me for a 20gauge grade 3 Citori 525 I was getting rid of cause 2 shots on December roosters is just dumb. I had that rifle for 2 years and got so I hated to even pick it up it was so beautiful. No way I could drag it out hunting and since that's what I do with guns...Same story with a maple Cooper custom. Only silver lining is I did the opposite of lose money on the deals.
My first rifle, a Sako .270. It had a modern FN action and Bofors barrel. I put a Weaver 10X scope on it and started reloading. Killed a lot of deer and chucks with it. Bought my reloading stuff from Herters. At 5K rounds, it began to slip a little and I sold it to a young fellow who answered my ad. Good shooter, beutiful lpiece of wood. Always regretted letting it go.
Lots of them but if I had to pick one it would have been a 22-243 Middlestead, Shiny Blue 700 action 24 inch Hart Tube with no taper, Canjar Trigger, Still Haunts me, Thank You Bob for reminding me
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There is your SharpShooter on the Bottom right below the Beast
Really three. Two rifles and a pistol. First rifle was my first high power rifle. At the age of 12 in 1969 I worked my butt off for a year mowing yards, hauling hay, working in the tobacco fields and anything else I could do to make a dime. I saved up $45. My Dad small game hunted and taught me but did not deer hunt. My neighbor and Sunday school teacher told me that if I would get me a rifle he would take me and teach me about deer hunting. In those days most any sporting goods or K-Mart type store had shopping carts full of surplus military rifles for $25 to $30. I was expecting to get a 98 Mauser 8mm. When we went to the store they had boxed rifles in a cart with a price of $40. Dad, a WWII vet, opened a box and pulled out a rifle and said this is what you want. Turned out to be a Springfield 1903A3 UNISSUED. Used it for about 4 years and decided I wanted something lighter and shorter for hunting in the rugged TN mountains and sold it for $45 and bought a Marlin 336 30-30 Win from my uncle.
I wish I had that back now.
Second was mu first M1 Garand I got through the CMP. Had to sale it when times were hard and needed to pay medical bills.
Third was a 1911A1 Colt. When I got married we were living on a show string budget. If I did not grow, shoot or catch it we did not eat it. I did a bunch of work for a fellow and part of my pay was this old ruff looking pistol. He had brought it back home from WWII. The reason that it look so ruff was, as he told me, a battle field pick up. He was a Marine and was on one of the Pacific islands. He said that he took it off a dead Jap who had taken it off an American. In the jungle things rust quickly especially if blood gets on it. You could see little pitted places on one side that left the print of blood splatter. Also this pistol had been pretty much been laying in a drawer in a house in East NC where it is really humid for about 35 years. I cleaned it up, the inside was in much better shape than the outside but the bore in the barrel was toast. Had been shot with corrosive primed ammo and not cleaned. I got a new barrel and spring from a friend in the National Guard, ask no questions and I will tell no lies. As I said I was pooooor. I learned to hand load for this pistol using tools and bullet mold of a friend. 7 grs Unique with a 200 gr SWC was pretty accurate. Even though it was not lawful at the time in NC I would tuck this pistol in my coat and while carrying my shotgun go down into the swamp and deer hunt. I kept my shots to under 50 yards and I killed quite a few deer cheaply to feed the family. That 200 gr SWC would put a caliber size hole through the chest cavity of a deer and they did not go far. A number of years latter times were better and I just had to have a Ruger Red Hawk 44 mag and I used this pistol in a trade for it. Wish I had it back now.
I wish I had that back now.
Second was mu first M1 Garand I got through the CMP. Had to sale it when times were hard and needed to pay medical bills.
Third was a 1911A1 Colt. When I got married we were living on a show string budget. If I did not grow, shoot or catch it we did not eat it. I did a bunch of work for a fellow and part of my pay was this old ruff looking pistol. He had brought it back home from WWII. The reason that it look so ruff was, as he told me, a battle field pick up. He was a Marine and was on one of the Pacific islands. He said that he took it off a dead Jap who had taken it off an American. In the jungle things rust quickly especially if blood gets on it. You could see little pitted places on one side that left the print of blood splatter. Also this pistol had been pretty much been laying in a drawer in a house in East NC where it is really humid for about 35 years. I cleaned it up, the inside was in much better shape than the outside but the bore in the barrel was toast. Had been shot with corrosive primed ammo and not cleaned. I got a new barrel and spring from a friend in the National Guard, ask no questions and I will tell no lies. As I said I was pooooor. I learned to hand load for this pistol using tools and bullet mold of a friend. 7 grs Unique with a 200 gr SWC was pretty accurate. Even though it was not lawful at the time in NC I would tuck this pistol in my coat and while carrying my shotgun go down into the swamp and deer hunt. I kept my shots to under 50 yards and I killed quite a few deer cheaply to feed the family. That 200 gr SWC would put a caliber size hole through the chest cavity of a deer and they did not go far. A number of years latter times were better and I just had to have a Ruger Red Hawk 44 mag and I used this pistol in a trade for it. Wish I had it back now.
Savage 12BVSS
Well-Known Member
I've bought, sold, and traded a few rifles in my time. None really make me that sad that are down the road but one, that one always makes me regret my decision. It was a savage model 99 presentation grade rifle made in 1968. Bought it new and never fired, used, or mounted a scope on it, kept the box, trigger tag, and booklet it came with, beautiful burl walnut stock with gold plated parts and heavy engraving. If it had been in rarer 284 it would have been a write your own ticket kind of sale, it was in 308 and I still had two collectors fighting over it. Gun like that never stops going up in value so I should have hung on to it, see one online now for $4000. Mine fetched the attention because it had everything it came with and no use or wear. Got good money for it looking back, but should have just kept it to the end
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